Archdiocese of Las Vegas Archidiœcesis Campensis | |
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 Guardian Angel Cathedral | |
 Coat of arms | |
| Location | |
| Country |  United States |
| Territory | Counties ofClark,Esmeralda,Lincoln,Nye, andWhite Pine |
| Ecclesiastical province | Las Vegas |
| Statistics | |
| Area | 39,688 sq mi (102,790 km2) |
Population
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| Information | |
| Denomination | Catholic Church |
| Sui iuris church | Latin Church |
| Rite | Roman Rite |
| Established |
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| Cathedral | Guardian Angel Cathedral |
| Patron saint | |
| Current leadership | |
| Pope | Leo XIV |
| Archbishop | George Leo Thomas |
| Auxiliary Bishops | Gregory W. Gordon |
| Vicar General | Gregory W. Gordon |
| Judicial Vicar | Robert M. Herbst |
| Bishops emeritus | Joseph A. Pepe |
| Map | |
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| Website | |
lvcatholic | |
TheArchdiocese of Las Vegas (Latin:Archidiœcesis Campensis) is aLatin Church ecclesiastical territory, orarchdiocese, of theCatholic Church insouthern Nevada, United States.
The seat of the archdiocese isGuardian Angel Cathedral in Las Vegas. The see had been a suffragan diocese of theArchdiocese of San Francisco from its creation in 1995 until 2023, when Las Vegas was elevated as ametropolitan see. The Archdiocese of Las Vegas has two suffragan sees in itsecclesiastical province: theDioceses of Reno andSalt Lake City.[3]
The Archdiocese of Las Vegas comprisesClark,Esmeralda,Lincoln,Nye andWhite Pine Counties.
The first Catholic Mass in southern Nevada was celebrated in 1776 in present-dayLaughlin by Francisco Hermenegildo Tomas Garces, traveling from Mexico when the entire region was part of the Spanish Empire.[4]
BishopLawrence Scanlan, head of the Apostolic Vicariate of Salt Lake City, established the first parish inPioche in the late 1880s. He ministered to the scattered Catholic population throughout southern Nevada. In 1908, Scanlan created St. Joan of Arc, the first parish inLas Vegas. Scanlan said that he chose the nameJoan of Arc because the blistering sun in Las Vegas reminded him of her suffering when she wasburned at the stake.[5]
In 1931,Pope Pius XI erected theDiocese of Reno, including the entire State of Nevada. The southern Nevada region remained part of this diocese for the next 64 years.[4] With the establishment ofBoulder City in 1931 to constructHoover Dam, St. Andrew Parish was created there to serve the Catholic construction workers.[6] In 1976,Pope Paul VI renamed the Diocese of Reno the Diocese of Reno-Las Vegas to reflect the growth of the Catholic population in southern Nevada.[6]
In 1995,Pope John Paul II divided the Diocese of Reno-Las Vegas into theDiocese of Reno and the Diocese of Las Vegas. He appointedDaniel F. Walsh, previously bishop of Reno-Las Vegas, as the first bishop of Las Vegas.
The second bishop of Las Vegas wasJoseph A. Pepe of theArchdiocese of Santa Fe, named by John Paul II in 2001.[7] In 2003, Pepe dedicated theOur Lady of LaVang Vietnamese Catholic Community in Las Vegas as a shrine. In 2004, he opened a diocesehuman resources department along with an Office of Hispanic Ministry, an Office ofLiturgy and Worship and a diocesan Office of Archives. In 2007, Pepe dedicatedBishop Gorman High School in Las Vegas.[7]
In 2007, George Chaanine, a priest at Our Lady of Las Vegas Parish, was sentenced to four to 12 years in state prison for assault. Chaanine had physically and sexually assaulted Michaelina Bellamy, the events coordinator for the parish, then evaded arrest for six days. Bellamy's injuries included a broken hand and two large gashes to her head. Chaanine later said he was in love with Bellamy and investigators found evidence that he provided her with financial support.[8]
On February 28, 2018,Pope Francis accepted Pepe's letter of resignation as bishop of the Diocese of Las Vegas after he reached the mandatory retirement age of 75.[9]
George Leo Thomas, previously bishop of theDiocese of Helena, was appointed bishop of the Diocese of Las Vegas by Pope Francis on February 28, 2018, and was installed as bishop on May 15, 2018.[10]
On May 30, 2023, Pope Francis elevated the Diocese of Las Vegas to an archdiocese and established the new ecclesiastical province of Las Vegas, with the Dioceses ofReno andSalt Lake City as suffragan dioceses.[11][12] Bishop Thomas was elevated to be the first archbishop of the archdiocese.[12]
Six families sued the Diocese of Las Vegas, along with Bishops Pepe and Walsh, in 2002. The plaintiffs claimed that Mark Roberts of Saint Peter the Apostle Parish inHenderson had physically and sexually abused them as boys between 1996 and 1999.[13] In 2001, Roberts pleaded guilty of open or gross lewdness and four counts of child abuse and neglect. He was sentenced to three yearsprobation and inpatient psychological treatment.[14]
In April 2019, the diocese published a list of 33 clergy with credible accusations of sexual abuse of minors. The list went back several decades, when the diocese was part of the Diocese of Reno.[15]
Gregory W. Gordon (2021–present)
Bishop Gorman High School – Las Vegas
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Roman Catholic Ecclesiastical Province of Las Vegas | |
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36°10′30″N115°08′11″W / 36.17500°N 115.13639°W /36.17500; -115.13639
